Reese's Peanut Butter Silk Pie

It was Dave's birthday on Thanksgiving this year so he didn't really get a cake, or a day all about him, so today I decided to make him a dessert featuring his two favorite things: Peanut Butter & Chocolate. 

This was SO good! So rich, so creamy, so tasty! You only need a small slice to feel satisfied, but I guarantee. . .you'll wake up and have leftovers for breakfast! 

I found it in a Hershey's Cookbook and made just a few changes. I'm sure we will make this many more times! 

Reese's Peanut Butter Silk Pie  

CRUST:

1 Shortbread Pie Crust (In the baking aisle.)

FUDGE LAYER:

1 cup Hershey's Mini Kisses

3 Tbsp heavy whipping cream

PEANUT BUTTER LAYER:

1 8oz brick of cream cheese

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup peanut butter

1 1/2 cup Cool Whip 

TOPPING: 

Cool Whip

Chopped Reese's Peanut Butter Cups

1. In a microwave safe bowl, melt together the Hershey Kisses and Whipping Cream.

2. Pour into pie shell and refrigerate until set.

3. In the meantime, mix together cream cheese, sugar, vanilla, and peanut butter.

4. Fold in Cool Whip.

5. Spread over Fudge Layer.

6. Top with Cool Whip and Reeses Peanut Butter Cups! 

7. Refrigerate at least 3 hours before serving.

Butterfinger Brownie Bottom Cheesecake

I LOVE Cheesecake!   I also NEVER make Cheesecake!  Well, I take that back, it's not never, it's rarely.  I usually make a cheesecake once a year, and it's always for Valentine's Day.  

I look forward to that day every year, and then I have one piece, and I'm done for a while.  It's just such a rich, decadent, heavy, dessert that one piece is all you need!   I have never made this recipe before, but WOW, it's amazing!  

I actually did the baking portion of this recipe last night, knowing I'd need it to be perfectly set and chilled for tonight.  And because I also knew that I'd have a hard time waiting till tonight to try it, I used a few spoonfuls of the brownie batter and cheesecake batter to make a "cupcake" version for my husband and I to try first!   It was just the right amount of peanut butter, with just the right amount of chocolate!  

This isn't your every-day kind of treat, but it's definitely a delicious dessert to make on a special occasion.  My occasion is Wednesday Night Church Small Groups!  It's not really a "special" night, or a night any different than any other Wednesday night, but it's an excuse to try a new recipe! 

Butterfinger Brownie Bottom Cheesecake

Brownie Bottom:
1 package Brownie Mix, any variety

Filling:
3 8oz packages of cream cheese
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup sour cream
3 eggs
1 bag of crushed Butterfingers (Set aside 6 for the topping.)

1.  Prepare brownie batter as directed on box.  Pour into a 9" springform pan, sprayed with nonstick cooking spray.

2.  Bake at 350 until set.  (About 30 minutes.)

3.  In a mixing bowl, blend together cream cheese, sugar, and peanut butter.

4.  Add in eggs one at a time.

5.  Mix in the sour cream and vanilla.

6.   Fold in the crushed Butterfinger Bars.

7.  Pour over the brownie crust, and bake at 300 for about 1 hour.   (Middle of cheesecake should be slightly set, but not firm.)

8.  Cool in refrigerator overnight!!!!!  This is the key to getting the right texture/consistency in cheesecake! 

9.  Top with Peanut Butter Buttercream and Crushed Butterfingers! (Recipe for Buttercream is below.)


PEANUT BUTTER BUTTERCREAM:
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 or 3 Tbsp milk


1. Prepare cupcakes and let cool completely.

2. Mix together butter, peanut butter, powdered sugar, and vanilla.

3. Stir in milk.

4. Whip frosting till it's light and fluffy.

Works in "cupcake" form as well!

Vanilla Puffed Pancake!

There are not many things that I think taste better than vanilla.  I love vanilla in everything!  I'd take a vanilla cake over chocolate any day, vanilla frosting over chocolate as well!  This recipe is Oh So Vanilla!   (Which may be why I love it so much!)  It's super easy to make, and something that looks so much more special than just your plain old pancakes.

It's only a handful of ingredients, all mixed together, and baked!  I always dust it with powdered sugar. . . and then I top it with fresh sliced strawberries!  In the wintertime, when strawberries are super expensive, I buy a great big bag of frozen berries at Costco or Sam's Club, thaw them, and mix with a few spoonfuls of sugar.  I never serve this sweet Vanilla Pancake with Syrup, always fresh berries.  The Pancake in it self is sweet enough, and to add syrup would be overkill for me, but if you've got a sweet tooth, and think no pancake would be complete without a little Maple, then go for it!

Vanilla Puffed Pancake

3 tablespoons butter
3 eggs
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup milk, heated 20 to 30 seconds in the microwave
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
Pinch salt
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting


1.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

2.  Put the butter in a large, ovenproof, nonstick saute pan and place in the oven. (I just used a pie plate.)

3.  Meanwhile, in a blender, combine the eggs, flour, warm milk, sugar, vanilla extract and pinch of salt, and   blend on medium-high speed until uniform. (If mixing by hand, combine the eggs with the milk until the mixture is light yellow and no longer stringy, about 1 minute. Add the flour, sugar, vanilla, and pinch of salt, and whisk vigorously to remove the lumps, about 30 seconds.)

4.  Carefully remove the hot pan from the oven. The butter should be melted. Swirl the butter around the pan to coat completely, and then pour the remaining butter into the batter and pulse to blend. Pour the batter into the hot pan and return the pan to the oven. Cook until the pancake is puffed in the center and golden brown along the edges, 20 to 25 minutes.

5.  Using a spatula, remove the entire Dutch baby from the pan and place on a cooling rack for a few minutes to allow the steam to escape without condensing along the bottom and rendering the pancake soggy. Dust with confectioners' sugar when cooled slightly. Slice the pancake into 8 wedges on a serving platter or cutting board.